Our
office will be closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, in the hope
that our team will get some well deserved time with their families. It
is our sincere hope that you get to do that as well.

If you
have an emergency or suffer an interruption to one of the essential
services you buy from us, please give us a call at 651-8341 and we will
respond, no matter the date.

We have done a lot of that
over the last 48 hours. Many of our folks worked continuously from
Saturday evening through late Sunday night, repairing damage done to our
networks by ferocious winds and some lightning. While all of the
repairs are not complete, we have been able to accomplish many repairs
and have implemented temporary fixes to other damage -- things that we
hope can wait for permanent repair until after Christmas.

We
give thanks during this season for another year in which we have been
able to be your "Cavalry" and come to the rescue of many folks who
needed help to return their lives to normal. We are thankful to have the
opportunity to be of service, and we are thankful that our team has
been able to do this work without being seriously injured. It is that
for which we are the most thankful.

We do not say that lightly,
because it is practically a miracle that we can say that. Conditions
like what we had Saturday and Sunday often put our folks in back yards
where they encounter a confusing array of downed trees, mud, energized
conductors wrapped around an array of communications cables and other
devices that present many dangers. This is normally done in total
darkness during a driving wind and rain storm. Successfully returning
your homes and businesses to the comfort and convenience that we need to
make our lives happy, is fraught with many complications and dangers,
and we count our blessings that we have a team capable of handling these
challenges.

Thank you for choosing Glasgow EPB to perform
these tasks for you. We hope that our work brings you the foundation of a
wonderfully happy holiday season and that you build pleasant memories
that will endure upon that foundation. Merry Christmas to you from all
of us at Glasgow EPB!

The cold weather simply
isn't letting up and once again the EPB needs your help. It
appears that Thursday morning is likely to set a new peak energy
demand for December with temperatures predicted to fall to new lows.
That is why we are declaring Thursday morning a Blue Level load alert
for Glasgow between 7:00 am and 10:00 am, and are again asking for
your help at both residences and businesses.

As we've
mentioned before, if you are an EPB power customer you can help the
community lower its energy bill from TVA. We have found that raising
your thermostat a bit higher than normal before you go to bed allows
you to store some heat before the coldest temperatures arrive at day
break. Then, when you get up, lower your thermostat a few degrees (68
is a good temperature) and leave it that way until 10:00 a.m. or
after. The pre-heating should help hold your temperature until the
end of the peak.

It is the large
appliances in a home that contribute the most to our peak demand in
the winter. Please delay turning on the clothes dryer, dishwasher, or
your electric oven between 7:00 am – 10:00 am on Thursday and limit
your use of hot water if you have an electric water heater. If you
are really feeling like helping, trip off your electric water heater
when you get up. You will still have hot water for your morning
routines, but the water heater will not immediately recover and drive
up our demand (just don’t forget to turn it back on later in the
day so it can recover).

Businesses can help by
lowering their thermostat temperature a couple of degrees during that
time frame and postponing any electric intensive projects until after
10:00 am or completing before 7:00 am.

We are busy working
on research projects that will allow these processes to be automated
so we do not have to ask you repeatedly for your help in minimizing
our peak demands. While we have some very interesting projects, right
now our only hope is for you to help us – and the entire community.
Thank you again for your assistance!